1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to handles for carrying objects, and more particularly to a handle having facility for securing numerous straps, loops or the like so as to aid in the transport of items such as grocery bags, shopping bags, etc. while easing the pressure applied to the carrier's hand and keeping the items clipped together for convenience.
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART AND RELEVANCE:
Plastic bags have become increasingly popular among grocery and department stores as an alternative to the traditional paper bag. Typically, plastic bags are made out of a thin gauge plastic and include one or two integral straps to be used as handles for convenient carrying of the bag and its contents. Since such bags are very thin and provide no structural support or rigidity of their own, the handles are essential, as it is virtually impossible to carry a full bag supported only laterally as with paper bags.
Unfortunately, the use of plastic bags presents several problems not incurred with paper bags. First of all, plastic bags typically have a smaller holding capacity than paper bags, thus requiring more bags to carry the same number of items. Secondly, the handles of such bags are typically constructed of a narrow strip of the thin plastic and are designed to be looped around a hand. However, items placed in the bags provide a substantial downward force on the handles, which in turn causes each handle to dig into the hand carrying it. When it is desired to carry a significant number of bags in a single trip, the bags must be laced on the user's hands, over the wrists and sometimes even on the arms, which again can cause painful welts and cuts. Obviously, the more bags carried at once, the more the handles will cut into the user's hand and the harder it will be to carry a large load.
Besides providing substantial discomfort during carrying, such bags are also inconvenient to transport. While paper bags have a defined structural shape and tend to remain upright on their own, plastic bags, on the other hand, have little structural support of their own. This allows items to easily and frequently roll or fall out of the bags when they are set down. This problem is particularly acute when transporting plastic bags in the back of a car or trunk, as groceries and other items can become scattered due to vehicle motion. Again, the more bags a user has, the more severe the problem can become.
After they have been set down or transported, another problem is incurred when it is desired to once again pick up the bags. Not only must all misplaced items must be replaced in the appropriate bags, but the handles of each bag must be individually collected and again looped around the carrier's hand. This is a needless, time consuming process that is once again aggravated by the fact that substantially greater numbers of plastic bags are typically needed to appropriately contain a given number of items.
Similar problems are incurred in the proper use and carrying of other types of bags and similar items. Thus, there is an ever increasing need for a device that effectively solves the problems typically associated with carrying items with handles, straps, loops or the like. Although invention and use of bag carriers is known to the public, the prior art devices have several problems and are limited in use, and thus have not gained widespread popularity.
One of the initial carrying devices is disclosed in patent U.S. Pat. No. 1,742,867 issued to Levi in 1930. This device has a tubular, flexible grip portion with a freely moving clip on either side. The device is designed to be used as a baggage or luggage handle, or to clip onto the handles of a bag, acting as a shock absorber as the bag is carried.
Patent U.S. Pat. No. 4,666,203 issued to Castro in 1987 discloses a bag carrier that has a rigid, tubular handle with hooks extending from each end, and flexible straps are provided in association with the hooks to selectively restrain the bag handles positioned on the hooks.
However, this device has several limitations. First of all, the small C-shaped hooks extend laterally outward from the handle, while any attached items extend straight down from the hooks. Thus, this configuration is limited in that heavy items may pull the hooks out of attachment with the body. In addition, the hooks are open-ended, thus allowing items to more easily be inadvertently unhooked from the carrier.
International Patent WO 91/11368 issued to Stoft et al. discloses a bag carrying device with an elongated body having a small bag strap entrance gap on each end, the narrow entrance gaps terminating in a larger bag-strap retaining area. While this device improves over some of the limitations of Castro's invention, it, too, has several limitations. A significant drawback of this device is that the bag-strap retaining area is positioned so that the bags are held above the bottom gripping surface of the elongated body. With this configuration, the downward force of the bags causes the body to rotate to the side while being grasped in the user's hand. This results in uncomfortable gripping by the user, and repeated repositioning of the device in the hand. The device is also flawed in that the strap entrance area is quite narrow, thereby making it difficult to remove the bags through the entrance area. Still further, the mouth of the narrow strap entrance area has an inward extending piece of material with an edge that is likely to get caught on skin or clothing, and may tear or damage the items as they are put into or removed from the device.
Patent U.S. Pat. No. 5,150,938 issued to Gans in 1992 discloses a grip bar with a cord permanently affixed to one end of the bar. The cord has apparatus for removably latching itself to the other end of the bar, so that the cord can form a closed loop of a fixed length with the bar as desired. The cord can be easily unlatched, looped through the bag handles and then relatched to secure the bags to the bar. The length of the cord is such that when the bar is lifted, the weight of the bags pulls the cord down several inches from the bar. This is a significant limitation of this invention, as it forces the bags to slide down the cord to a single central point, thereby concentrating all of the carrying weight at a single point rather than evenly distributing it along the length of the grip bar. Patent U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,757 issued to Montoya in 1993 discloses a carrier designed specifically to hold plastic bags. The carrier has a horizontal upper handle section joined to a parallel lower support section by a vertical web member. The lower support section provides three captive openings spaced equal distances apart for receiving bag handles. Each captive opening has a retention clip that restricts the passage of the bag in and out of the opening. This device is designed so that the weight of enclosed items is distributed over a larger area. Unfortunately, this requires that the device have a substantially larger size than other prior art devices, making it less convenient to carry and store. In addition, although the addition of an extra opening could potentially give the device greater holding capacity than other prior art devices, the three openings are considerably smaller than those of prior art devices, and thus gives the device little or no increased carrying capacity. In fact, the three opening configuration simply adds to the bulk of the device and makes it more difficult to properly balance the weight among the three openings. While the addition of the retention clips helps keep items secured to the device even during transport, they also make intentional removal of items difficult, and may rip or tear the items during the removal process.
Thus, there is a clear need for a carrier that improves upon the prior art devices and effectively and easily aids in the transport of handled or strapped items. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages as described in the following summary.